Saturday, August 22, 2015
YOUNGSTOWN
After pleading guilty to hiding campaign money from the Ohio House Democratic Caucus, ex-state Rep. Ronald V. Gerberry apologized, but said, “I was not aware that this was an improper transaction.”
Upon hearing about Gerberry’s comments, Mahoning County Democratic Party Chairman David Betras said, “I find it disingenuous for Mr. Gerberry to attack the very organization that helped him raise money. He received a lot of money out of Columbus. The caucus helped him raise that money.”
Gerberry, an Austintown Democrat, said Friday that the caucus in 2009 and 2010 put “tremendous pressure on all of its members to contribute money to the campaigns of other Democrats. I attempted to hide money from the caucus by intentionally overpaying my media consultant with the understanding that what money was not spent on media would be refunded to my campaign.”
With Gerberry in a “relatively safe district,” Betras added, “he’s asked to help other Democrats get elected. That’s not pressure. It’s part of being in politics. If you don’t like that, then don’t get into politics. I can’t believe he said that.”
Through its spokesman, the caucus declined to respond to Gerberry’s critical statements.
Gerberry, 62, pleaded guilty Friday to a misdemeanor count of unlawful compensation of a public official.
Judge Maureen A. Sweeney of county common pleas court gave Gerberry a 180-day suspended jail sentence plus three years of unsupervised probation – prosecutors had recommended two years as part of a plea deal – and 500 hours of community service. A $1,000 fine also was suspended by the judge.
The sentence and fine could be imposed if Gerberry doesn’t continue to cooperate with those investigating political corruption in the area.
Also, Friday was the effective date of his resignation from the Ohio House, where he was the most-senior member, serving 27 years.
The Ohio House took his picture off its website before Gerberry’s plea.
Gerberry had been an elected official since 1973. He was elected that year to the Austintown school board at age 19. He served in the House from 1982 to 2000, leaving because of the state’s law on term limits. In 2000, Gerberry was elected Mahoning County recorder. He left that job in 2007 for the state House.
The Vindicator exclusively reported Aug. 11 that sources close to the investigation said Gerberry overpaid vendors to make it appear he spent money from his political campaign fund, and then had it returned to him later as a refund in order to pay less to the Democratic caucus.
County Prosecutor Paul J. Gains, a fellow Democrat who has known Gerberry for years, handled the case in court. During the court appearance, Gerberry apologized to Gains and numerous others.
After the sentencing, Gains called what happened “a tragedy.”
He added: “I’m disappointed, but Mr. Gerberry has done the right thing from Day One on this. He’s cooperated fully. He’s accepted responsibility, and he’s continued to cooperate.”
Gerberry said he would cooperate with local, state and federal officials investigating political corruption in the Mahoning Valley.
If investigators “asked me questions about Oakhill or any other issue, I will honestly answer any question,” he said.
Oakhill is a reference to the Oakhill Renaissance Place criminal-corruption case.
That indictment accuses Youngstown Mayor John A. McNally, ex-county Auditor Michael V. Sciortino – both Democrats – and Martin Yavorcik, who lost the 2008 county prosecutor’s race as an independent candidate, with conspiring with others to illegally impede or stop the move of the county Department of Job and Family Services from the Cafaro Co.-owned Garland Plaza to Oakhill, the former Forum Health Southside Medical Center that is owned by the county.
The three have pleaded not guilty to a total of 83 counts including engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, conspiracy, bribery, perjury, money laundering and tampering with evidence.
Transcripts of Gerberry secretly recorded by a confidential witness, and his campaign-finance reports for 2008 and 2010 are part of the Oakhill case’s evidence, according to court filings in that matter.
In a prepared statement, the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber said Gerberry’s guilty plea “adds another sad chapter to this community’s legacy of political misbehavior. Mr. Gerberry has not only soiled his own name, but placed another stain on all of us who call the Valley our home.”
At least three county politicians, all Democrats, have been found guilty in recent years of crimes related to making false statements on campaign-finance documents: ex-Treasurers John Reardon and Lisa Antonini – the latter also was a county Democratic chairwoman; and Mark Belinky, a former probate court judge.
Also, among the numerous charges filed against McNally, Sciortino and Yavorcik is tampering with records related to financial disclosure and campaign-finance reports.
“I’m just hoping that other public officials learn a lesson from this that you can’t play fast and loose with campaign-finance laws,” Gains said.
Gerberry said he didn’t believe he did anything wrong.
“But ignorance of the law is no excuse and I want everyone to know I accept full responsibility for my actions,” he said.
Also, Gerberry said, “I want to make it very clear – because it hasn’t been made clear in the print [media] – that I took no money. Every penny that I was refunded went back to my campaign committee. Not one penny, and I really hope that we can make that clear to my constituents and the people that donated to me.”
Betras said giving contributions to caucuses or parties – Democrats and Republicans – is a common and effective way to elect officeholders.
Gerberry’s campaign-finance reports show he gave the caucus $26,000 in 2009, $104,000 in 2010, and only $1,000 in 2011 and $6,000 in 2012.
While a source close to the investigation said Gerberry gave campaign money to more than one vendor and then later had it returned, on Friday he only mentioned overpaying his “media consultant.”
That consultant was Harry Strabala of Youngstown, who couldn’t be reached Friday by the newspaper to comment.
Campaign-finance reports going back to 2009 show Jericho Group and Forte Media, both owned by Strabala, refunded about $45,000 to Gerberry with more than half of that happening in 2012.
Before the hearing, Gerberry’s wife, Kathryn, confronted a reporter from The Vindicator, who wrote in a column last week that her husband was “known for being cheap.”
“There are only a few people in this world who can call my husband cheap and you are not one of them,” she said.
Gerberry said he would donate the money he has left in his campaign fund – $46,691 as of June 30 – to six charities he declined to mention Friday.
With Gerberry gone, the caucus will choose his successor with input from the county Democratic Party’s executive and central committees in the 59th Ohio House District.
Betras said he asked Gerberry to give money to help defray the cost of picking his successor and Gerberry said no.
“That’s him turning his back on the people who put him there,” Betras said.
The party will meet shortly to recommend to the caucus three or so candidates to fill out the remainder of Gerberry’s term, which expires Dec. 31, 2016.
Among those interested are John Boccieri, a former U.S. House member, state representative and state senator; county Commissioner Anthony Traficanti; John Landers, a Boardman school board member; Poland Trustee Robert Lidle; Austintown Trustee Jim Davis; former Boardman Trustee Robyn Gallitto; and David Green, former head of United Auto Workers Local 1714.